JEFFERSON PARISH, La. — Two former Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office deputies who were arrested in the shooting death of 34-year-old Daniel Vallee in February have been formally charged.
The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate reports that the Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office filed manslaughter charges against 29-year-old Issac Hughes and 35-year-old Johnathon Louis.
Sheriff Joseph Lopinto said in February that the two deputies were part of a group of five that surrounded Vallee's car while responding to a 911 call about a noise complaint in the 500 block of Wilson Street in Marrero. The sheriff said officers pleaded with Vallee to get out of his car, and at some point Vallee dropped his hands, causing the vehicle's horn to honk. The noise prompted one deputy to fire his weapon, and another officer shot in reaction.
Lopinto said Vallee put the deputies in a "highly stressful situation" but the use of force was not justified. Vallee was not armed.
Vallee's death was the first shooting deaths involving deputies since the JPSO implemented body-worn cameras.
Hughes had been with the JPSO for nine years. Louis has been with the department for one and a half years.
The sheriff said Vallee was wanted for questioning for some thefts in Plaquemines Parish and an overdose in Gretna, but the deputies at the scene did not know that at the time of the shooting.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.